to do. But Lindsay had said to stay near the phone. Emma couldnât imagine how Antonia would have got her number, but if there was any chance at all that she would ring, she didnât want to be too drugged to take the call.
âYou really should try to sleep,â Dr. Stanford advised her.
âI will,â Emma said. âBut for now, I need to be awake.â
⢠⢠â¢
And then, just after five oâclock that evening, the phone rang.
Lindsay and Detective Inspector Hill were in the flat. Lindsay had been there most of the day, making endless cups of tea, and nipping round to Sainsburyâs to buy soup that Emma wasnât able to eat. Detective Hill had just arrived an hour agoâto take Emmaâs official statement, he said. Lindsay explained to Emma how this was done.
âJust tell us everything youâve told us already, as it occurs to you,â she said. âPlus anything else you may have remembered in the meantime. Donât worry if you get confused or if things arenât in the right order. Weâll be recording everything you say, so we can put the full statement together later from the tape. At some point weâll ask you to read it through, and if youâre happy weâll ask you to sign it.â
Emma spoke into the tape recorder and repeated most of what sheâd told the police the night before. She didnât remember anything new. When the statement was finished, Lindsay got up and went into the kitchen to boil the kettle. Emma went to the bathroom. She was just unbuckling her jeans when the low brrr-brrr of the phone started up from the sitting room. She froze. In the mirror over the sink, a white-faced scarecrow, harshly lit from above, gaped with black, sunken eyes. Emma listened, hardly breathing, very still.
The ringing was cut off. Lindsayâs voice spoke, paused, spoke again.
And thenâOh sweet Jesus!âthere came running footsteps and a hammering on the bathroom door.
âEmma.â Lindsayâs tone was urgent. âQuick. Quick.â
Emma let go of her belt and stumbled to the door.
âItâs a man,â Lindsay hissed. âWouldnât give a name. Are you expecting a call?â
Emma shook her head. She couldnât think . . . Unless it was Oliver, ringing to say heâd heard. She took the phone. There was no feeling in her fingers; she had to use her other hand to stop it slipping.
âHello?â
A manâs voice said: âIs that Emma Turner?â
It wasnât Oliver.
Emma went rigid. Beside her, Lindsayâs eyes were so wide Emma could see the white bits around her pupils.
âYes?â Emma said.
âOh, hello. My name is Rafe Townsend.â
She had never heard the name.
âYes?â
âWe met yesterday. In the tube station, remember?â
Emmaâs legs buckled. Lindsay gripped her arm. Emma clutched a table for support.
âHello?â the voice was saying. âHello? Are you still there?â
âYes,â Emma said coldly. âYes, Iâm here.â
âYou left all your bags behind when you got on the train,â the man said. âYour number was in your wallet. I hope you donât mind me ringing, but I wanted to check you got your baby back all right.â
Chapter Five
Emma couldnât speak. It was a while before she could even understand what the man was talking about. Feelings rushed at her. Relief that this man on the phone wasnât the kidnapper. Disappointment that he wasnât. It was too much. Too much. She backed away, dropping the phone on the floor.
Lindsay and Detective Hill were with her at once. Who was this person? they wanted to know. Where had she met him? How much had he seen of what had happened?
âHe tried to help me in the station.â Emma was shaking. âHe pulled me back from going under the train.â
Detective Hill picked the phone up off the
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